McKesson said its business and distribution centers remain operational in the wake of a cyberattack it disclosed Friday that resulted in data theft and temporary service interruptions.
Attackers gained access to some of the health care vendor’s third-party applications and stole data associated with a subset of customers in the company’s oncology, multispecialty and medical-surgical business units, Francisco Fraga, chief information and technology officer at McKesson, said in a statement Saturday.
McKesson is a major player in the healthcare sector, claiming it distributes about one-third of all pharmaceuticals used throughout North America. It reported $403.4 billion in revenue for the one-year period ending in March.
The company’s size and critical role it serves also makes it a high-profile target for cybercriminals. McKesson did not identify the group behind the attack, but ShinyHunters, a cybercrime group known for targeting large organizations with extortion demands after stealing massive amounts of sensitive data, claimed responsibility.
The company declined to answer questions about ShinyHunter’s claims. Yet, on Friday, McKesson disclosed the attack in a regulatory filing while ShinyHunters added the company to its data-leak site.
McKesson said it discovered the attack Aug. 25. A period of widespread data theft was over by then, following a four-day intrusion beginning Aug. 21, according to researchers.
“Upon discovery, we immediately activated our incident response protocols, launched an investigation, and engaged leading cybersecurity industry experts to support our response,” Fraga said in a statement.
“We have reasonable assurance of no ongoing unauthorized activity in our systems. Customers can continue to connect to and use our systems and services as intended,” he added.
While McKesson’s investigation continues, it faces a more urgent deadline of Sept. 1 from ShinyHunters, which is reportedly seeking a ransom demand in excess of $55 million.